Gaming social networks are growing rapidly and attracting many internet users. I don’t know whether it was the success of social networking sites that attracted online games to add community features or the craze for online games that magnetized social networking sites to add online gaming features to their sites; but the fact is that online gaming social networks have become the most preferred way to socialize and have fun. “Social and gaming networks, once considered polar opposites, are cross-pollinating as online interactions replace prime-time TV and other, more traditional media experiences. Games like Kaneva are attracting players that games like Super Mario Brothers never did,” says Matt Slagle in his article in USA Today. It means social and gaming networks are rocking! Is the success of social gaming networks daunting the leading video game companies like Sony and Nintendo? Is the popularity of social gaming networks going to be the beginning of the end of the videogame disc?

Online social network games are more appealing to people than digital games because these games provide entertainment at its best. The popularity of Second Life and World of Warcraft shows that people now prefer social gaming over digital gaming. “Online social gaming is distinct from the digital games industry that grew from the Pong arcade game to the multibillion-dollar behemoth of today: companies like Electronic Arts, Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft, as well as mega-multiplayer web sites like ‘World of Warcraft.’ Digital game blockbusters may earn millions of dollars — but people may ultimately regard social gaming as ‘more meaningful,’” said Jeremy Liew of Lightspeed Venture Partners.

Popular social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace are expanding their platforms through social gaming. Facebook is collaborating with Zynga and Social Gaming Network to let its users to play different popular games on the site. Kongregate, another popular free gaming site, is also working with Facebook for a perfect social gaming service. While Zynga, SGN and Serious Business rely on social networks for distribution, Greer hopes Kongregate’s new Facebook apps will drive traffic to the Kongregate site. About 90 percent of Kongregate’s users are under age 34, and 85 percent are male. By going into Facebook, “we’d like to balance it out a little more,” he said. “We’re experimenting.” I believe these joint ventures have rung the bell for digital video games.

While researching this topic on the internet, I read an interesting post on the Silicon Alley Insider blog analyzing the effects of social gaming networks on the digital gaming market. The videogame sale is moving from disc to download – you can download PSP games from the internet. According to the author of the post, The Beginning of the End of the Videogame Disc?, “Electronic Arts’ (ERTS) studio Criterion Games said yesterday that it’s releasing the full version of racing game ‘Burnout Paradise’ for download through Sony’s (SNE) PlayStation Store sometime in the next month and a half. The game went on sale in disc format for the PS3 in January.” Some other gaming companies are also adopting this idea. Although these downloads will not be free, the affordable download price will definitely make this idea a hit.

The social gaming industry is getting mature. It is embracing the new entertainment trends, such as social networking. The best thing is that companies like Sony, 3D Realms and ERTS are also adopting the changing trends in the video gaming industry. I believe that gaming social networks are the future of video gaming industry. If that’s true, then this is definitely the beginning of the end of videogame disc.

References:

Vasanth Sridharan. (2008). The Beginning Of The End Of The Videogame Disc?. Retrieved Sept. 24^th, 2008 from http://www.alleyinsider.com/2008/8/the-beginning-of-the-end-of-the-videogame-disc-

Friends meet, build social networks on online game sites: ONLINE GAME SITES SURGE IN POPULARITY AS PLACES TO BUILD SOCIAL NETWORKS. Retrieved Sept. 24^th, 2008 from http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/news/Stock%20News/1611858/

Matt Slagle. (2008). Online games meet social networking tools. Retrieved Sept. 24^th, 2008 from http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2007-11-22-socialgames_N.htm

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